Specific CO 2 emissions of road transport have decreased since 1995, mainly due to an improvement in the fuel efficiency of passenger car transport. Recent EU Regulation setting emission performance standards for new passenger cars is expected to further reduce CO 2 emissions from light-duty vehicles in view of the 130 g/km and 95 g/km emission targets set for 2015 and 2020 respectively.
Specific CO 2 emissions of air transport, although decreasing, are of the same order of magnitude as for road, while rail and maritime shipping remain the most energy efficient modes of passenger transport.
Specific energy efficiency of light and heavy duty trucks has improved, but road transport still consumes significantly more energy per t-km than rail or ship freight transport. CO 2 emissions from light commercial vehicles are also expected to decrease in view of the 175 g/km and 147 g/km emission targets set for 2017 and 2020 respectively.

The total energy consumption in transport in Mtoe from 1990 onwards. Transport modes included are bunkers (sea), air transport (domestic and international), inland navigation, rail transport and road transport (split by passenger and freight). The most recent year is an extrapolation based on monthly fuel deliveries.

Starting from 2012, a specific binding CO2 target is calculated for each manufacturer every year based on the average mass of its fleet. For evaluating the progress of manufacturers towards their targets, the EEA is collecting and quality checking data on CO2 emissions from passenger cars registered in all Member States of the European Union since 2010. Using the Member State data, this note provides an overview of the performance of cars manufacturers in meeting their CO2 emissions targets.